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One Special Day
Nehemiah 10:31 '[The people of Israel made this promise:] "When the neighboring peoples bring merchandise or grain to sell on the Sabbath, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or on any holy day. Every seventh year we will forgo working the land and will cancel all debts."' (NIV)
 In our fast-paced world, one day seems pretty much like all the rest. We do much the same thing just about every day. There's not much that changes over the week. Except perhaps that on Sundays we might slow down enough to read the newspaper, or play with a kids, or watch football on TV. Yet this is one area where God's people are called to stand out, to be different. There are special blessings stored up for people who try as much as they are able to keep the Lord's Day holy. That means to keep the Lord's Day as a separate day, a day unlike the others. The Lord's Day isn't given just so that we can have a rest and recuperate from the toil of the week, and it's not just designed to force us to have some family time. It can serve all those purposes, of course. But the primary aim is so that we will remember the Lord, and give him some extra thought and time – in corporate worship, in hearing his word proclaimed, and in private meditation. Now, some people have to work on at least some Sundays in a year, because that is what their employers require, but this isn't ideal for a Christian and we at least make an effort to avoid it where we can. We should also show some restraint when it comes to shopping on Sundays. Consumerism has become such a way of life today that people find it hard to restrain themselves from buying and selling even for a day. I'm talking here to Christian people: while the wider society might find no reason to cut back for the Lord's Day, we should discipline ourselves. I'm not suggesting we should set this out as some hard, legalistic dogma. We're not under the Old Testament law any more, we are under grace. Yet, we seem to have gone to the other extreme. We've forgotten that keeping one day holy to the Lord was a principle set in place long before the Law of Moses was given – it stretches way back, in fact, to the creation story itself. If we're finding that God's word is not working in our lives, perhaps we might need to start with a reappraisal of the way we treat that one special day of the week, the Lord's day.
Prayer: 'Lord, help me to keep your day separate from the rest, as much as possible giving time to worship, your word and fellowship with you and my godly friends.'
© 2003-2004 Mal Fletcher
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Dear Mal, I saw you some years ago in Lisbon. I was deeply blessed by your prophetic spirit for the nations. I'm especially moved by your messages that speak about being an influence in our world...
Paulo Batista, Portugal
Mal, I just wanted to thank you for visiting Abundant Life and RN06. I am a psychiatrist in the NHS and agree very much with what you were saying about the secular services coming to us in 20 years for advice on how to do things. A group of us are starting a ministry to be ready to be asked!
Rob, United Kingdom
Mal, I had the good fortune of hearing your wisdom on several topics, here in the USA. Thank you. I hope our paths cross again.
Koz, USA
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